2013-14 Departmental Performance Report
Horizontal initiatives

Atlantic Canada Agreement on Tourism in Support of the Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership(2012-2015)

Name of Lead Department: Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA)

Lead Department PAA Program: Community Development

Start Date: April 1, 2012

End Date: March 31, 2015 (three years)

Total Federal Funding Allocation (from start to end date): $9,975,000

Description of Horizontal Initiative (including funding agreement):In 1994, ACOA entered into a three-year international tourism marketing agreement with the provincial tourism industry associations and the provincial departments responsible for tourism in Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. Since 1997, the agreement, known as the Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership (ACTP), has been renewed for consecutive three-year terms.

The ACTP is dedicated to promoting Atlantic Canada as a leading vacation destination in priority markets in the mid-Atlantic and New England regions of the United States and in the United Kingdom. It enables the four Atlantic Provinces to penetrate markets that are inaccessible individually; generate marketing economies and efficiencies at the consumer, travel trade and media-relations levels; and create significant opportunities for regional tourism synergies.

Since its inception, the ACTP’s international marketing efforts in the U.S. alone have generated more than $794.7 million in export revenues for tourism small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Atlantic Canada. Marketing efficiencies are demonstrated by a return on investment of $14.53 for every dollar invested in marketing.

The 2012-15 ACTP is a $19.95 million federal-provincial agreement that supports:

Funding of the 2012-13 to 2014-15 Atlantic Canada Agreement on Tourism in support of the ACTP is shared as follows: ACOA, $9,975,000 (50%); provinces, $6,583,500 (33%); and industry, $3,391,500 (17%).

Additional information can be found on the ACTP website.

Shared Outcomes: The ACTP directly supports the Federal Tourism Strategy’s strategic priority of “increasing awareness of Canada as a premier tourist destination” and ACOA’s Growth Strategy for Tourism. It exemplifies the strategic outcomes for ACOA's priority of increasing revenues, profits, investments and wages. The ACTP’s outcomes aim to:

Governance Structure: A management committee is responsible for the administration and management of the 2012-15 ACTP agreement. It is also responsible for the communication of activities undertaken through the agreement and for the coordination of the agreement with other federal and provincial projects and industry activities. The ACTP’s management committee is made up of 10 members: the four provincial deputy ministers (or their designate) responsible for tourism in Atlantic Canada; the presidents (or their designate) of the four tourism industry associations in Atlantic Canada; the vice-president of ACOA’s Prince Edward Island regional office; and the director general of Tourism Atlantic (ACOA).

On behalf of ACOA, the four provincial departments of tourism and the tourism industry in Atlantic Canada, the Tourism Industry Association of Prince Edward Island (TIAPEI) is the recipient for the 2012-2015 ACTP agreement. In its role as recipient, TIAPEI manages the three strategic elements of the 2012-2015 agreement: marketing, evaluation and administration.

At the national level, the Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC) is the lead organization in marketing Canada to the world. Collaborations with the CTC in markets of common interest advance the competitiveness and economic benefits derived from tourism, both regionally and nationally. To achieve greater coherence supporting Canada’s Federal Tourism Strategy and the long-term growth and competitiveness of Canada’s tourism industry, a senior representative from the CTC sits ex officio on the ACTP management committee.

Performance Highlights: During fiscal year 2013-14, TIAPEI’s marketing activities generated $54.9 million in export revenues for tourism SMEs in Atlantic Canada. With a return on investment of $14.32 for every dollar invested in marketing, TIAPEI surpassed the ACTP’s target of 10 to 1. TIAPEI’s marketing activities also generated almost $6.1 million in publicity value, and leveraged $283,000 in incremental marketing investments through joint marketing agreements with tour operators in the U.S. and the U.K.[1]

Federal
Partner
Federal
Partner
PAA
Program
(Sub-program)
Federal
Partner
Contributing
Activity/
Program
Total
Allocation
(start to
end date)
2013-14
Planned
Spending
2013-14
Actual
Spending
Contributing
Activity/Program
2013-14
Expected
Results
2013-14
Achieved
Results
ACOA Community Development
(Community Investment)
Atlantic Investment Partnership II — Tourism $9.975 million $3.325 million $3.325 million Incremental economic activity for every $1 invested in marketing*: $10 $14.32*

* Marketing activities are expected to generate $41.67 million in export revenues in each year of the partnership. The total three-year revenue target is $125 million in incremental revenues for Atlantic Canada tourism SMEs.

Comments on Variances:
Spending – No variance
Results – Increased destination awareness combined with targeted lifestyle marketing tactics and a fragile economic recovery in the U.S. contributed to an increase in U.S. travellers visiting Atlantic Canadian destinations in 2013.

Results Achieved by Non-federal Partners: ACTP enables industry, the four Atlantic provincial governments and the Government of Canada to pool resources in order to increase the visibility of Atlantic Canada as a leisure travel destination in priority markets. In most cases, this exposure would not be possible individually. The ACTP facilitates the following: relationship building and a collaborative partnership with the CTC; joint marketing partnerships with tour wholesalers and tour operators; marketing efficiencies (e.g. media buys, media relations); research efficiencies that support marketing strategies and tactics; familiarization tours that provide travel writers and tour operators with first-hand information on, and exposure to, the region’s tourism assets; and support to Atlantic Canada Showcase, a venue that allows tourism SMEs to interact with tour wholesalers and tour operators.

Contact Information: Rob McCloskey
Director General, Tourism Atlantic
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
P.O. Box 40
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
C1A 7K2
Telephone: 902-626-2479
E-mail: Rob.McCloskey@acoa-apeca.gc.ca

International Business Development Agreement (2011-2016)

Name of Lead Department: Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA)

Lead Department PAA Program: Enterprise Development

Start Date: April 1, 2011

End Date: March 31, 2016 (five years)

Total Federal Funding Allocation (from start date to end date): $7 million

Description of Horizontal Initiative (including funding agreement): In May 1994, ACOA entered into an agreement (the Canada-Atlantic Provinces Agreement on International Business Development, also known as the IBDA) with the four Atlantic Provinces, Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada, and Industry Canada to “undertake specific measures to optimize regional coordination on a pan-Atlantic scale and combine limited resources to coordinate trade-related activities.” Since its launch, the agreement has been extended five times (in 1997, 2000, 2005, 2010 and 2011), for a total investment of $35 million from federal and provincial contributions. The latest extension sunsets on March 31, 2016. Funding is cost-shared 70/30 between the federal (through ACOA) and provincial governments. The commitment to renew this agreement for five years attests to both the IBDA’s positive results and its significance for the future of Atlantic Canada’s international business development.

More information can be found on the IBDA website.

Shared Outcomes: The shared outcomes for IBDA partners support ACOA’s trade-related activities and are: number of SMEs expanding their international sales; number of clients participating in international events; and number of clients participating in training or outreach programs.

Governance Structure: ACOA is the lead organization for this initiative and houses the secretariat responsible for administering the agreement. A management committee (comprised of a representative from each of the partners) is responsible for the planning and management of the agreement’s strategic elements and the evaluation of projects.

Federal departments and agencies (70% funding):

Provincial governments (30% funding):

Performance Highlights: During 2013-14, ACOA and its partners approved 19 projects. The harmonization of the IBDA and pan-Atlantic trade and export activities previously funded by the Agency’s Business Development Program provided an opportunity to streamline the application and funding approach and to simplify the administration of projects by consolidating all the services in one office and creating a central point of control. Surveys[2] conducted show that 85 clients expanded their international sales, 327 clients participated in international events, and 102 clients attended training or outreach programs. The IBDA also contributed to the diversification of markets by supporting projects in developing markets (e.g. outgoing trade missions to Brazil and China as well as projects in India).

Federal
Partner
Federal
Partner
PAA
Program (Sub-program)
Federal
Partner
Contributing
Activity/
Program
Total
Allocation
(start to
end date)
2013-14
Planned
Spending
2013-14
Actual
Spending
Contributing
Activity/Program
2013-14
Expected
Results
2013-14
Achieved
Results
ACOA Enterprise Development
(International Business Development)
Business Development Program — International Business Development Agreement $7.0 million $1.4 million $1.7 million Number of projects undertaken: 30 19
Number of SMEs expanding their international sales*: 35 85
Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada International Commerce not applicable $0 $0 $0 same as ACOA same as ACOA
Industry Canada Internal Services not applicable $0 $0 $0 same as ACOA same as ACOA

* includes new exporters, exporters to new markets, and increased sales to existing markets

Comments on Variances:
Spending – In 2013-14, an additional $300,000 was invested in IBDA projects to support a higher demand.
Results – With the additional $300,000, the IBDA supported 19 larger projects. A total of 85 Atlantic Canadian SMEs expanded their international sales during 2013-14, surpassing the target of 35. A portion of the increase can be attributed to efforts and emphasis placed on expanding in emerging markets such as Brazil and China while maintaining efforts to continue in traditional markets such as the United States and Europe.

Results Achieved by Non-federal Partners: Same as federal partners.

Contact Information: 
Alan Kinnie
Acting Director General, International Business Development
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
P.O. Box 6051
Moncton, New Brunswick
E1C 9J8
Telephone: 506-381-9340
E-mail: Alan.Kinnie@acoa-apeca.gc.ca

[1] MRSB Consulting Services, Evaluation of the 2012-15 Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership, 2012-2013 Annual Report, May 2013.

[2] Report on IBD activities: Atlantic Canadian SMEs participating in ACOA-supported projects are asked to complete an exit survey following the completion of an activity, as well as another survey one year later to gather additional information. The survey is not mandatory; however, efforts are made to obtain as many completed surveys as possible.

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